IFC, ADB invest in AC Energy’s green bond

AC Energy Holdings Inc. has bagged a cumulative $95 million worth of investments from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for the Ayala-led company’s green bond issuance.

In a regulatory filing submitted by Ayala Corp. Investor Relations head Celeste Jovenir, the company said IFC provided an anchor investment of $75 million to the company’s five-year green bonds.

Ayala Corp. is the parent company of AC Energy, and AC Energy Finance International Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of AC Energy through which the green bonds were issued.

This completed the public placement of the bonds, and supported raising a total of $300 million from local and international investors.

The $75-million investment carried a coupon rate of 4.75 percent, and will be listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange where the initial $225-million issuance was listed on January 30, 2019.

In the same filing, AC Energy said it completed a $110-million private placement of ten-year bonds with a coupon rate of 5.25 percent, with ADB as one of the main investors that placed $20 million.

Proceeds from the green bonds will be used to support AC Energy’s plans to establish and expand a regional presence in clean project development, in line with environmental practices.

“This climate bond will help the Association of Southeast Asian Nations meet its target of drawing 23 percent of the region’s energy mix from modern, clean, and sustainable renewable sources by 2025,” Michael Barrow, director general of ADB’s Private Sector Operations Department, said in a separate statement.

“AC Energy aspires to be a regional leader in renewable energy, and ADB is delighted to support the Ayala Group in this effort by anchoring this investment and crowding in other institutional investors,” he added.

AC Energy president and CEO Eric Francia citied the implications of the transaction in terms of future investments in green energy.

“We believe that this green bond issuance offers investors a compelling alternative to traditional investments and will help promote financing of clean energy projects by the private sector across the region,” he said. —VDS, GMA News